Illustrated newspapers, filled with wood engraved images, made their appearance in the United States in the 1850s. Gleason's Pictorial Drawing-Room Companion, Frank Leslie's Illustrated Newspaper, and Harper's Weekly covered every topic that their readers might be interested in. Their ability to provide articles and images in a very timely manner made them the perfect media from which Americans could get their news of the war.

Leading up to bombardment at Fort Sumter and extending well into the aftermath of the war, each weekly issue of these publications included stories and pictures about the war. So many different images were printed in such large numbers that the majority of the Civil War images viewed by the public--both in the North and in the South, as well as in the rest of the world--were those published in illustrated newspapers.

The images in these newspapers were often based on photographs or first-hand drawings, so they were not only timely, but accurate as well. As the publishers of one paper explained, "The proprietors of Harper's Weekly beg to state that they have made the most extensive arrangements for the illustration of future movements at the South, and that the public may rely upon finding in Harper's Weekly an accurate and reliable picture of every scene of interest to which occurrences may direct attention."

During the Civil War, almost without exception, the earliest and most accurate images of battles or other events were those from the illustrated newspapers. Photographs of the time could not take action shots and other forms of prints would take months, if not years, to produce from the original drawings. The illustrated newspapers sent out artists into the field to document the events of the war and they make sketches in the camps and on the battlefields.

Within a matter of just days after making the sketches, using a process developed by Frank Leslie, the on-the-spot drawings were turned into wood engravings and published for the American public to view as they read the reports of the battles, generals, troop movements, etc.. These prints, therefore, are the most immediate and accurate images of the war, especially for the battles. As they provided an important source of information to the public during the war, so too they provide us today with some of the best contemporary documentation of the war.

Note on condition: The paper used for the illustrated papers was not of top quality and in general these prints were not treated with great care. Thus most of these prints have some discoloration, minor edge tears and occasional light stains or spots. The prints listed below are in "good" condition, with any significant flaws noted. We would be happy to provide a more detailed description of any particular prints upon request.

"In and About Port Royal, South Carolina." From Harper's Weekly. New York, January 11, 1862. 9 x 13 3/4. $40

"The Defenses of Washington-Fort Ellsworth, South of Alexandria," and "The Defenses of Washington-Fort Lyon, On the Heights of Hunting Creek-The Largest Work on the Line of the Potomac." From Harper's Weekly. New York, January 11, 1862. Each 4 1/2 x 13 3/4. $35

"General View of the Mississippi River From Cairo, Illinois, to the Mouth of the River." From Harper's Weekly. New York, January 11, 1862. 9 1/8 x 13 3/4. $30

Angelo Weser. "The Vessels of General Burnside's Expedition at Annapolis." From Harper's Weekly. New York, January 18, 1862. 9 x 14. $30

"Building Huts for the Army on the Potomac." From Harper's Weekly. New York, January 18, 1862. 5 1/2 x 9. $25

"The War in Virginia--A Reconnaissance in a Laurel-Brake." From Harper's Weekly. New York, January 18, 1862. 7 x 9. $25

"The City of Richmond, Virginia." From Harper's Weekly. New York, January 18, 1862. 14 x 20. With map of James River. A couple small binding holes in centerfold and repaired marginal tear at right. $75

Hillen. "Surprise of Rebels Between Hurricane and Logan, Western Virginia, By a Detachment of Colonel Piatt's Zouaves (Thirty-Fourth Ohio Volunteers), Under Lieutenant Rowe." From Harper's Weekly. New York, January 18, 1862. 6 x 9. $25

"Destruction of A Schooner Off Cumberland Inlet, Georgia, By the Boats of the 'Alabama,'" and "The Pirate 'Sumter' Firing at the Brig 'Joseph Parks,' of Boston." From Harper's Weekly. New York, February 1, 1862. Cover illustration, 11 x 9. $30

"Execution of Gordon the Slave-Trader, New York, February 21, 1862." From Harper's Weekly. New York, March 8, 1862. 6 3/4 x 9. $20

A.L. Rawson. "General View of Fort Donelson," and Alexander Simplot, "The Attack of the Second Iowa Regiment on the Rebel Batteries at Fort Donelson." From Harper's Weekly. New York, March 15, 1862. Cover page. $35

A.R. Waud. "Major-General M'Clellan, Major-General M'Dowell, and Staffs, Escorted by the Fifth Cavalry, Crossing Bull Run at Blackburn's Ford," "Bridge Over Bull Run, Near Blackburn's Ford, Burned by the Rebels," and "Evacuation and Firing of Manassas Junction by the Rebels." From Harper's Weekly. New York, March 29, 1862. 14 x 20. $65

A.R. Waud. "Rebel Winter-Quarters at Centreville, Virginia, with Bull Run in the Distance" and "Intersection of the Orange and Alexandria Railroad with the Manassas Gap Railroad at Manassas Junction." From Harper's Weekly. New York, March 29, 1862. 9 1/4 x 13 3/4. $30

"The Expedition Against New Orleans" including "Fight Between the 'Varuna' and the 'Governor Moore,'" "The Flag-Ship 'Hartford' Assailed by a Steam Ram and Set on Fire by a Raft in Running the Forts," "The 'Hartford' and 'Brooklyn' Silencing the Chalmette Batteries," "Arrival of the Flag-Ship 'Hartford' Off the City of New Orleans, 1 P.M., April 25," "Fort St. Philip," "Fort Jackson," "Blowing up the Steam Battery 'Louisiana' After the Surrender," and "General Butler's Troops Coming Through the Bayou." From Harper's Weekly. New York, May 24, 1862. 9 x 13 3/4. $25

"The Expedition Against New Orleans" including "Fort John Morgan, Nine Miles Above New Orleans," "Battery Opposite Fort John Morgan," "Interior of Fort St. Philip," "The Southwest-Pass Bar," "Interior of Fort Jackson," and "Destruction of Cotton-Laden Vessels by the Rebels Near New Orleans, on the Approach of the 'Hartford,' on April 25, 1862." From Harper's Weekly. New York, May 24, 1862. 9 x 13 3/4. $25

"The City of Richmond" including "Henrico County Jail, Richmond," "The Capitol at Richmond," "Rebel Prisons on Main, Near Twenty-Fifth Street, Richmond." From Harper's Weekly. New York, May 31, 1862. 13 3/4 x 20 1/4. $75

"Feeding the Negro Children Under Charge of the Military Authorities at Hilton Head, South Carolina." From Harper's Weekly. New York, June 14, 1862. 7 x 9 1/2. $25

"Robert Smalls, Captain of the Gun-boat 'Planter,'" and "The Gun-boat 'Planter,' Run out of Charleston, S.C., By Robert Smalls, May 1862." From Harper's Weekly. New York, June 14, 1862. 14 1/2 x 9 1/2. With text. $25

Mead. "The Army of the Potomac--General Davidson's Brigade Taking Possession of Mechanicsville Near Richmond, Virginia, May 21, 1862." From Harper's Weekly. New York, June 21, 1862. 4 1/2 x 13 3/4. $25

"Rendezvous of Our Fleet in James River, Off City Point." From Harper's Weekly. New York, June 21, 1862. 4 1/2 x 13 3/4. $25

Alexander Simplot. "The Army of the Mississippi-Looking into Corinth From General Pope's Observatory," "Our Pickets at Farmington Church, Two Miles From Corinth," and "General Pope's Troops Throwing up a Magazine Near Farmington." From Harper's Weekly. New York, June 21, 1862. 9 x 13 3/4. $35

A.R. Waud. "The Army of the Potomac--Captain Porter's Massachusetts Battery Shelling the Rebels Across the Swollen Chickahominy" and "The Army of the Potomac--General M'Clellan Reconnoitring the Turnpike to Richmond from the Peach Orchard at Mechanicsville." From Harper's Weekly. New York, June 21, 1862. Full page with text, 9 x 13 3/4. $35